Definition
Staking is the act of committing an asset to participate in a protocol's security or incentive system. In a proof-of-stake blockchain, it commonly supports validator duties such as proposing blocks and attesting to the accepted history. Participants may receive rewards and can face penalties, withdrawal delays, or slashing under the network's particular rules. Staking can be performed directly or through a provider, and pooled or liquid-staking products introduce additional contracts and operational arrangements. The term is also used loosely for locking tokens in unrelated reward programs, so an advertised staking product should explain what the committed assets actually do. Bitcoin uses proof of work and does not pay native proof-of-stake rewards to BTC holders. Products described as BTC staking rely on an additional protocol or service. Quoted reward rates are not guaranteed investment returns and must be considered alongside fees, token value changes, and potential losses.
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